Penguin returns to Orkney waters

Finnish developer Wello Oy’s Penguin wave device has arrived in Orkney ahead of deployment at the European Marine Energy Centre.

The 1600-tonne device was towed from Cornwall to Kirkwall by Orkney-company Green Marine, which is also involved in mooring system and other preparatory work at EMEC’s wave test site at Billia Croo.

Wello says the tow went well despite a few days of delay due to weather conditions, with installation at EMEC set to be completed by March 31.

Timo Lotti from Wello said: "Two weeks ago, the sea cable was prepared for connection and mooring laying is due to begin as weather allows.

“The project is lucky to have such amount of expertise, experience and enthusiasm. Good leadership and a common goal help us going forward to the successful finish."

Deployment is to be followed by the construction of a new device, with work due to begin before the coming summer. Its development is currently being fine tuned and verifying tank tests are ongoing.

Heikki Paakkinen, Wello’s chief executive officer, said: "The technology team has managed to achieve smoother and continues circular hull movement which reflects into good quality of electricity and a higher energy gain."

The EMEC deployment is part of a European Union Horizon 2020 Clean Energy From Ocean Waves (CEFOW) project.

The project aims to deploy advanced multiple wave energy converters (WECs), with improved power generation capability, and demonstrate that they are able to survive challenging sea conditions over a period of several years.

The Penguin device is around 30 meters long, nine metres in height and has a draft of around seven meters. Only two meters are visible above the water surface. It was first deployed at the Billia Croo wave test site during the summer of 2012.